| Here in another installment of The Article Guy's | | | | accomplishment? |
| Article Marketing Interview Series. Today I | | | | Article writing quickly led to a book contract. I |
| interview Leann Weiss, author of Hugs for Friends | | | | now have almost 7 million copies in print. |
| & Heartlifters for Mom. | | | | 4. Where do you get your ideas? |
| 1. How did you get started writing articles? | | | | Listening to the radio (music, talk shows, & |
| April 1996, I went to a Christian writers | | | | news), browsing bookstores once a week, t.v. |
| conference to find out how to protect my | | | | commercials, reading popular magazines, bill |
| copyright on a personalized product I was desk | | | | boards, networking with a wide variety of people, |
| top publishing. At the conference, I scheduled an | | | | listening to conversations while I'm at airports or |
| appointment with Lee Grady to discuss the | | | | public locations & skimming a ton of books. |
| possibility of writing a devotional for Charisma | | | | 5. What has article writing and article marketing |
| Magazine. Lee delivered the keynote at the | | | | done for you and your business? |
| luncheon before our meeting. During his | | | | To be honest, I haven't really written many |
| presentation, he said that his magazine only | | | | articles the last eight years because I was so |
| accepted devotionals if you were a national | | | | busy writing books and articles seemed to be so |
| speaker or author. So I went up to him after | | | | time consuming. But I'm re-examining the |
| lunch to cancel our meeting. He asked what type | | | | possibility as your templates will make it much |
| of writing I did. | | | | easier to write without monopolizing my time. So |
| He was surprised when I explained that I wasn't a | | | | your article teleseminars have been very helpful. |
| writer, I had only registered to learn more about | | | | THANKS! And I hadn't really thought of writing |
| copyright protection. Lee asked what I did for a | | | | articles for the web. |
| living. When Lee learned that I was a political | | | | Points we can use |
| consultant, he asked me a series of questions. An | | | | 1. You never know where an interview will take |
| hour later as we wrapped up our discussion about | | | | you. |
| Christians in politics, he asked if I could meet a | | | | 2. 11 different sources of ideas - "Listening to the |
| two week deadline to write about the topic we | | | | radio (music, talk shows, & news), browsing |
| had just discussed. October 1996 my first article | | | | bookstores once a week, t.v. commercials, |
| was published in their election issue. | | | | reading popular magazines, bill boards, networking |
| 2. What has been your biggest mistake? | | | | with a wide variety of people, listening to |
| My first article started with over 4000 words. It | | | | conversations while I'm at airports or public |
| took me almost two weeks to cut it to 1200 | | | | locations & skimming a ton of books" |
| words. | | | | 3. One article can lead to a book deal. |
| 3. What has been your biggest success and/or | | | | 4. One article can launch a career. |